We’ve all pooped our pants. Maybe you only did it when you were a baby, or maybe when you were potty training. Or you may be too embarrassed to admit there’s been an incident or two since then. I’ve certainly pooped my pants. I can tell you for sure my kids have pooped their pants.
I’ve got two pants-pooping stories to share.
First, my son. To protect the innocent, I won’t name names. And to be clear, it’s been a number of years since he did this.
One of my boys was potty trained. He was still wearing a pull-up at night, but he was great during the day. Then Leann and I started to notice a trend.
If he played in the backyard, he would poop his pants. Not every time, but a significant amount. He was so happy to be playing, that he let loose, and didn’t realize it until afterward.
Now an even more interesting story. I have some friends that run for exercise and fun. Over time I began to hear a rumor. After a while, I finally asked a few of my runner friends, and it turned out the rumor was true.
Marathon runners poop their pants. On purpose.
It’s definitely not all the runners, just “elite” ones. Normal runners take a quick break if they need to.
But the runners that are extremely serious about it, need to poop, and don’t want to sacrifice any time, will just poop their pants. They suppress their own instincts and just let loose, all while still running.
If you’ve ever seen a photo of someone finishing up a race with an amazing time, pay attention to the photo. It may be strategically cropped for a reason.
As far as I know, the Bible doesn’t talk anywhere about pooping your pants. But it does talk quite a bit about doing God’s will instead of your own. That’s always been a concept I’ve struggled with. How could I completely give up my own will, and replace it with God’s?
I believe I was approaching the concept the wrong way. You don’t just ditch your will and instantly replace it with God’s. Rather, you start doing God’s will here and there. Eventually, it grows to the point that if you’re doing it right, you don’t even think about it, and are constantly doing his will instead of your own.
You have to start like the runners, then end up like my son. At first, you have to make a conscious decision to suppress your own instincts and habits, and do God’s will even if it seems weird and unnatural.
Over time, you progress to the next stage. You’ll enjoy doing God’s will so much, that doing your own will won’t even occur to you.
I’m certainly not there, and I think most of us aren’t. But if I’m taking action, and seeking out opportunities to do God’s will instead of my own, especially when they’re in direct conflict, then I’m making headway.
Now, when you read Paul’s words in 2 Timothy about finishing the race, you’ll think to yourself, “I’ll bet he pooped his pants for God.”